So now the inevitable question: Is this too much of a good thing? With the NCAA having done outdoor games for a while now, and the NHL having done them since 2003 (the first Heritage Classic took place in November 2003 in Edmonton) it’s clear that the ability to do these games on a consistent basis has found a way to make things manageable to do even at the junior levels. Is this the sort of thing that will lose its luster if it’s overdone? Depends on who you talk to.

Doing these sorts of events at different levels with varying amounts of media exposure allows the fans to enjoy these things at those levels. Obviously the NHL’s two games this year will garner most of the attention because those games are happening with huge media attention. The NCAA game at the Big House will likely draw the largest crowd ever to see a single hockey game, but it’s not going to dominate the headlines the way a Sid v. Alex Winter Classic will, nor should it. To put it differently, there’s nothing wrong with the game of hockey turning a single game into a major event for the fans. Sure, folks will worry about the weather and ice quality and potentially really bad view from distant seats, but that comes with the territory.

It all boils down to having the chance to sell a lot of tickets for a single game to help make those teams a lot of money. That might not be the full motivation at the NHL level, but you better believe it is for both the WHL and the NCAA. If fans don’t mind shelling out the bucks and braving the cold, it’s something leagues will keep doing. Anyone thinking that the NHL is going to go into overkill mode by trying to do outdoor games in Texas and Florida are likely also spending their weekends shouting at clouds just to have something to yell about.

The New Jersey Devils have been incredibly difficult to beat at home. Lately, the St. Louis Blues have been on a roll just about anywhere.

On Friday night, the Blues were the hotter team, handing the Devils their first home loss in regulation in 2016-17. And it wasn’t particularly close, with St. Louis winning 4-1.

It’s a convenient time to note that the Blues rank among the hottest teams in the NHL. Most recently, they’re 5-1-1 in their last seven games, but they’ve been especially impressive since they flirted with .500 at 7-6-3. Beginning with a 4-1 win against the Buffalo Sabres on Nov. 15, the Blues are on a 8-2-1 tear.

That’s impressive stuff.

This 4-1 win was quite the showcase for Robby Fabbri and Vladimir Tarasenko, in particular. Tarasenko collected three assists while Fabbri scored two goals on Friday night. His second goal was particularly slick:

The Blues are right in saying that this was a pretty fitting opportunity to drop a “Holy Jumpin.”

Minnesota Wild goalie Devan Dubnyk has been the most difficult goalies to score against this season. Leave it to a high-level player like Leon Draisaitl to make it look this, well, “easy.”

Draisaitl scored his 13th goal of 2016-17 by capping this pretty give-and-go play with Benoit Pouliot. You can see the frustration from Dubnyk at the end of the tally, as if he was saying “How was I supposed to stop that?” (though probably with more colorful language).

Draisaitl came into Friday with five goals and three assists in his last five games, so he’s been almost unstoppable lately.